Liz? Posting on a Wednesday? Yep! This post is a special one because yesterday, my favorite boys made their comeback! For any newcomers to the blog, I am a major kpop fan and my favorite group of all time is Victon, a 7-member group under IST Entertainment (although one of the members is currently enlisted in the military). Their last comeback, which I wrote about on the blog,was a year ago, so when this comeback was announced back in December 2021, Fans for the groups were excited and happy to finally see the boys together again getting ready for a new release! In this release, there are three songs on the album (that’s typically what single albums consist of) with the title track being called “Chronograph”. Like in most reviews, I will talk about each track on the album one-by-one and tell you my honest opinion on them! Yes, even though these are my boys and I love them to death, I will be honest in my thoughts and give my honest opinion about the songs.
So, without further ado, let’s start!
1.) “Chronograph”
This title track is so funky, y’all. Like when the M/V for this song came out, it was nothing like I would expect it to be. IN all honesty, it took me a couple of listens to get into it because it was just… different. Like the beat is great and it’s so bright and colorful (which is something we haven’t seen Victon do since… well, forever) but the song can sometimes feel a little lackluster and under the radar. What I mean by that is that in the first couple of listens, I found myself not really listening to the song; like it was just playing, and then it was over. But! The song did get stuck in my head all day yesterday, and so I had to listen to it like 900 more times before I felt the groove and the funk of the song. I think this title track is definitely experimental for the group, and I’m excited that even in their styling for this comeback, it’s something we really haven’t seen Victon do since their debut. But, of course I want to be brutally honestwith this review, I do have to say this isn’t my favorite title track of theirs, nor is it my favorite on this album. She’s a bop, but I find myself being more into the b-side of this album.
2.) “Want Me”
“Want Me” is so painfully beautiful and hypnotizing; that’s not even an exaggeration. When first listening to the song, the beat sounds very “tropical” in a sense (which would make sense since they spoiled in their comeback showcase that this song was the sound that their next comeback would resemble; am I smelling a sad Summer comeback?) but the lyrics pretty much talk about how someone misses a person not in their life anymore and that they are sorry for how things ended up, but they still want that person back. Subin’s “I can fix it” and “I can be better” lines truly hit in the feels that I didn’t know I even had anymore. Also, the chorus is highly addicting, and overall this song just feels very much like a Victon song. I really hope during their promotions, they perform this b-side on a music show or a variety show or even prepare it for their Fanmeeting in February because I would love to hear some live vocals for this song. Definitely my favorite out of the two here, but like who’s surprised: Victon has some of the best b-sides ever.
3.) “Chronograph” (English Version)
Victon’s first-ever English song, you guys! Of course, it’s just the title track in English translation, but here’s the thing about kpop songs translated in English: they always tend to feel a little dirtier than the Korean translation. The English version of this song is what made me like the title track in the first place, to be quite honest. In the English translation, the song is about liking the time spent on the person you’re crushing on/in love with and that no matter what, you can’t get them out of your mind. It’s cute, but when you have Seungsik sing “I won’t hold it back, let’s slow it down” and “Cause I wanna come explore you”, my knees went weak on my way to work listening to it. It’s so good! Of course, I won’t say anything about their English pronunciation because a.) English is not even a second language they know well and b.) this is their first time singing an all-English song like I would love to see non-Korean speaking singers try to sing a whole song in Korean; kpop idols are not human, y’all. Anyway, in saying that, I do hope that their pronunciation improves throughout their career (because I think the feedback on this English version would be positive and Victon is aiming to be more internationally known anyway) because it’s hard to sometimes decipher what they were singing, but other than that, it slaps and they did so well considering it was their first English song!
But yeah! I’m so excited that our boys are back in action and performing together again after a whole year! I definitely missed the feeling of comeback and being a part of the promotion period with them and getting all this new content from our boys! Let’s hope that this promotion period, all of the boys are in good health and stay in good health and make lots of great memories.
Finally, the day has come! Victon finally made their comeback with their first full length album, VOICE: The Future is Now. I’ve been waiting for this album to drop since they first announced it back in November! They were supposed to make their comeback in the beginning of December but due to the potential exposure of COVID-19 through one of their staff members, they postponed their comeback. Since then, Alices have been patiently waiting for this monumental comeback from out favorite boys and here we are, living. Of course, like every other Victon comeback, we will sit down, listen, and discuss their new music and talk a little about it! Just a mini disclaimer: any of the translations of the lyrics may not be 100% accurate since not many translations of these songs are out yet in the time that I’m writing this!
The opening melody of this song fits so well to the majestic and magical realm that this album has. When I first heard this song on the album, I was blown away by the power that these boys project in their vocals; it reminds me a lot on how ATEEZ, another Kpop boy group, performs their tracks on their albums. “Into The Mirror” is just the beginning of Victon’s journey of making their dreams a reality, and the powerhouse vocals that Seungsik and Sejun have in this track blew me away. Such a strong opening to an amazing album!
Y’ALL. THIS TITLE TRACK. It’s definitely a sound that Victon have been preparing us in their b-sides for the last year because WOW, they executed this hip-hop/rap/pop tough ass fucking song so well! SO lyrically, the song radiates confidence, pretty much saying that anything that I say well be put into reality, again going with the theme of this album perfectly.
First of all, Hanse went the fuck off with his raps! It was rough, it was hard, and it’s something that fits Hanse’s style so well, like his parts are some of the toughest in the song. ALSO, the melody in the back… y’all. When Victon first started to tease this album and this melody was playing in their teasers, I was dying, just hoping the beat was their title track beat. It’s just so fucking tough, the stank face is permanently on my face when I listen to this song. Typically, certain members just slaughter their title tracks but honestly, they all carried this song so well and I was instantly hooked. Song of the year, yall.
“Circle” definitely carries some classic Victon energy; it’s light, it’s “feathery”, and majestic, something Victon is really good at creating as a group. This track follows that same theme of “just do what you want to do”, don’t wait for time to grant you the things you need, go and run after them. It’s a beautiful song, and the choreography really gives me “Time of Sorrow” vibes, but just so much more mature and pretty! It’s definitely one of my favorite b-sides on the album and such an easy listen.
“Chess” is so sexy! I love the instrumental on this song; it’s definitely something really unique for Victon to do, but it fits them so well at the same time? Like, it’s a real grown version of what Victon are becoming and I’m so fucking here for it. Seungsik’s chorus literally is so mesmerizing with the bass in the back of his sexy ass riffs and oof, okay Liz, calm down. Anyway, “Chess” is about being hooked and intrigued by someone; the game they play is something you’ve never encountered before and it’s just really interesting to witness. I knew Chess was going to be one of my favorites because of the breakdown of the chorus was just so sexy and so up my fucking alley, and I was not wrong.
Another classic sounding Victon song, which in all honesty, I’m so happy that even with their growing sound, they still have some elements of their classic sound on this album. “Up to You” was a song that I needed to get warmed up to, but it’s such a cute and sexy song, I couldn’t resist just smiling and possibly blushing through it. The lyrics are pretty much about always being the one to make the decision but this time around, it’s up to the person they are feeling. It’s such a catchy song and Sejun’s voice in the chorus is just so poppy and bubbly and ahhh, it’s so good!
Okay, so back in August around the time Seungwoo was preparing for his solo debut, he had played a demo of a song he was working on that everyone instantly fell in love with and questioned if that song was going to be on the upcoming solo album. Homie pretty much said that the song doesn’t fit into the style of his solo album, and that he wrote it for the intention of possibly giving it to Victon. And giving it to Victon he did. I was so excited to finally hear this song on an album after so long! This is another song that has that very classic Victon feel. the lyrics are so pretty; they pretty much talk about being with someone that makes you smile, which is just… so uwu. It’s such a simple and easy listen; it’s definitely a refreshing song on the album because it’s one of the softer tracks on this really tough album!
I knew when I first heard this song when the album came out, I was going to cry. I totally did, but cam you blame me? Seungsik is my ult, my kpop boy, my favorite of favorites, and when I found out he was coming out with a solo track on this album, I was so exicted. I was even more excited when I saw that Seungsik’s solo was written by every member of Victon besides him. It was like they all had that song in mind for Seungsik and like it’s so fucking heart-melting because like they wrote such a beautiful song for their leader to sing! Of course, this song will most likely be that song I go to when times get hard for me because the lyrics of the song is just so beautifully written and just a constant reminder that no matter what happens and no matter the direction life takes you, just keep going, carry on. It’s such a smoothing song; no crazy instruments in the back, no super-duper high notes, just a beautiful man and his beautiful vocals.
Before I say anything else about this track, I have to say that I forgot how lusty and sexy the intro to this song was! So, this song was actually performed a year ago at their first concert as a his solo stage, and I’m so glad that they got to officially release it on an album! It’s such a Chan-fitting song, his vocals are so sultry and the fact that he wrote, composed, and arranged this song on his own with the help of one other person, like we stan multi-talented idols! The lyrics are sexy and I know my best friend, Ro, was probably crying ult tears while listening to their man. Haha ^__^
Sejun’s vocals always go unappreciated and this solo track says otherwise. Sejun’s voice is unbelievably light, feathery, and soft on this song! I feel like I’m just sitting on a cloud whenever I listen to this song, but that could also just be because the song is called “Utopia”. The lyrics are just about being free with the person you love and care about and (again) it’s such a refreshing song on such a hard and tough album. It’s still one of the songs I still have to listen to and allow it to grow on me, but nevertheless, it;s a beautiful fucking song.
Hanse’s solo track is powerful, to say the least. I always liked how Hanse would rap; he has a crazy flow and a unique voice behind that flow, but he also has a very sing-song type of style on the softer songs that I always enjoyed, and this track showcases that. Another easy listen to and something I find myself thinking a lot about while listening to this. There aren’t any official lyrics out to this track yet, but I can only imagine they are more than lyrics, they are statements, because that’s just how Hanse is. It’s also another song I don’t immediately gravitate towards, but it’s still such a good song.
When the highlight medley first came out, the community kept talking about how “Unpredictable” was going to be the best song out of the album. It was sexy, it was bumpin’, and I thought I was really going to like this song. It’s not my favorite. I think the chorus is really my favorite part of the song, but the melody behind it doesn’t really vibe with me well. Again, I’m probably just being a fake ass bitch and will probably like it the more I listen to it, but as for now, she’s not my favorite.
THIS IS MY FAVORITE SONG OFF OF THE ALBUM, HANDS DOWN. If “What I Said” wasn’t on this album, I think “Flip A Coin” would’ve been the title track; it has so much potential to be one! I knew I was going to like this song as soon as I heard Seungsik singing “Flip that coin, flip it flip it”, I was in love. The lyrics of this song follow the theme of the album: we are following our dreams and whether or not we leave it to fate, we are still going to do our shit.. I would like to call this song Victon’s “cocky” song; the song that they get to brag and be confident in their successes within the last year and a half. The beat goes so fucking hard, Seungwoo and Hanse’s rap parts in this go so fucking hard – they really all went crazy on this track. I have this song stuck in my head and it will probably stay stuck for days.
This song. This song, for such a happy song, made me cry the hardest on my way to work. “We Stay” feels like a song about Alice, the Victon fandom. It’s about how they will stay with us and never leave us if we stay with them, and honestly just by following them for a year and a half and getting to know where they came from, I understand just how many hardships came with them during the first couple of years of their career. With talks of disbandment back in 2018 when they were struggling to make a scene in the very competitive Kpop community, they are doing so well for themselves and I couldn’t be more proud of them. This song, and everything this song represents, felt like a thank you to those who stayed during those hardships.
Overall, this album is possibly my favorite album of their discography, hands down. Their debut mini album will always hold a special place in my heart, but this album just speaks a different language and it’s just highkey so amazing. All 13 songs are just so unbelievably great in their own way; I don’t think there will be another album this year that will top this one, hands-fucking-down. 2021 is Victon’s year, and I’m so ready to be on this ride with them!
Letters From Liz. 